Gryffin‘s shaping up to be one of the biggest breakout electronic music artists of 2016, and for good reason. The NYC-based DJ/producer released a compelling debut single in the form of January’s “Heading Home” before embarking on a tour of its namesake, and now he’s teamed up with Manila Killa on a remix of British singer/songwriter Jack Garratt’s “Surprise Yourself.”
Remixing a song as elegantly simple as “Surprise Yourself” is no simple task. The source material left scarcely anything that could be improved upon, dooming just about any reimagining to the fate of sounding mediocre by comparison. Be that as it may, Gryffin and Manila Killa managed to put a vaguely future bass spin on “Surprise Yourself” that differentiates it enough that it doesn’t need to compete. Garratt’s soulful verses are framed here by rich instrumental samples before a drop whose melody is reinforced by pitch-shifted cuts from the vocal.
It’s excellent work, to be sure, and even though we’re still eagerly awaiting another original from Gryffin, this remix is definitely enough to hold us over until he releases one.
